Episode 355: The Last and Longest Show of 2013
Date December 27, 2013 Summary Ben and Sam answer listener emails until Sam’s battery dies. Topics * Elimination game strategy * 2014 AL East & AL West predictions * Maximizing wins without home runs * Specialized player development model * Catcher framing improvement * Impact of switching positions * Ambidextrous pitchers * New baseball media Intro The Bad News Bears sound clip Banter The podcast will end the week/year with an episode that is a multiple of five. Email Questions * Robert: "We often hear elimination games described as 'all hands on deck' scenarios with managers employing shorter hooks, all available starters in the bullpen, and other tactics that ignore the future beyond the day's game. Does this change in strategy actually help any, and if so, how much?" * Robert: "Tougher division next year: AL West or AL East?" * Robert: "In which pocket do you keep your wallet, and is there any change in it?" * Michael: "If your goal as a GM was to maximize your wins to home run ratio, what lineup would you choose assuming average pitching?" * Ryan: "My question pertains to the applicability of an economic model to baseball. In the Ricardian model, named after economist David Ricardo, countries unequivocally gain by specializing in a certain product and subsequently trading said product on the international market for other goods. By engaging in free trade each country utilizes its comparative advantage to become better off in terms of utility. Could the same thing work in baseball and farm systems? For the purposes of baseball puns it could be called the Richardian Model. Complete specialization would most likely be infeasible as trading a stockpile of, say, second basemen for a roster of 9 other players would probably make the savviest GMs head spin. But let's say 30 teams each partially specialized in 1 of 10 positions, lumping relievers and starters together to simplify the math, thereby leaving three teams per position. Could you envision such a model working?" * Scott: "Can catcher framing skills break out like Chris Davis' home runs did?" * Cody: "My question concerns defensive development of young players who break in at positions other than their long term position. For example, if JJ Hardy leaves the Orioles or if Drew does resign with Boston for one year how difficult would it be for Machado or Bogaerts to move over to shortstop, after a year or more of playing third base? Similarly if Oscar Taveras is playing all three outfield positions most of 2014, how much does that hinder his ability to player center field in 2015 or 2016? * Annie: "Goofy hypothetical here: While perusing Baseball Reference pages recently I came across the bio of a fellow named Icebox Chamberlain. A pitcher who apparently was ambidextrous and would occasionally switch arms during the course of a game. This got me thinking: obviously it would be just about impossible for anyone to consistently do this at the major league level today, but let's say it were possible and that person could exist who would be able to get major league hitters out with both his left and right arm. What kind of impact would he have on the game? How much more valuable would that make him than someone who was a league average pitcher using one arm?" * Brett: "Though BP's brand allowed for a great deal of latitude, there are still interesting ways to talk about baseball that don't seem like they would fit within the BP brand. What podcast or website that doesn't yet exist and wouldn't be a good fit for BP do you wish you could listen to or read?" Notes * Sam describes an idea in which Game 7 of the World Series would be played at a neutral site weeks after the first six games, allowing for a true 'all hands on deck' scenario. * Sam notes that he wears a black hoodie most days of the year. * In the last five years, the 2012 Giants have the highest wins to home run ratio with .91 wins per home run. * Ben's lineup for Michael's question would be: John Jaso, Joe Mauer, Marco Scutaro, Everth Cabrera, Alberto Callaspo, Brett Gardner, Denard Span, Norichika Aoki, Shin-Soo Choo. This is 25 WAR with 71 home runs. * Ben highlights JP Arencebia's dramatically improved catcher framing performance in the past several years. * Ben & Sam discuss ambidextrous pitcher Pat Venditte, who would get called up to MLB in 2015. * Sam says he would have like to go through the MLB injury logs over the years and figure out which ones happened while pooping. He says, "I moved on from that idea for about 1,000 reasons and I apologize for having remembered it". * While reading examples of historical figures that died while pooping, Sam yells at Ben for sharing a Game of Thrones spoiler. Links * Effectively Wild Episode 355: The Last and Longest Show of 2013 * How to Stop a Baseball Game in its Tracks by Matthew Coury Category:Email Episodes Category:Episodes